Magnetism: A powerful force!

Magnetism is truly an amazing phenomenon. It occurs naturally as earth’s magnetic field as well as in man-made and modified objects. Earth’s magnetic field is thought to have been originated from the molten volcanic rock in ridges underneath the ocean as a result of plate tectonics and subduction. Though Earth’s magnetic field seems to be weaker compared to other stars like Neutron which has magnetism “thousand trillions of times stronger than that of Earth’s”, it is still strong enough to deflect sun’s solar waves or trap it in the form of “Aurora Borealis”. Without this magnetism, humanly in general and most importantly electricity would not exist. Solar waves are strong enough to bring darkness to a nation full of lights but magnetism stops this from happening. It also keeps the moon in orbit around the planet and keeps Earth itself from going off its orbit. Man uses this magnetism to generate electricity as well as run machinery and manufacture consumer products. To understand the force of Magnetism, one must understand its use and function.

First of all, Magnetism is used in many roller coaster tracks. The magnets in the roller coaster, as well as the electromagnets in the tracks, attract and repel each other creating roller coaster motion at high velocity. The repulsion is simultaneous with the “linear synchronous motor” or the “motion of the car”. The same system is used in “Maglev trains” or Magnetic trains with the only difference being levitation. Rail tracks and train magnetic mechanisms repel each other with the motion of the rail car. This magnetic repulsion creates someone the fastest trains and tallest roller coasters in the world. “Fer-rite magnets” in automobiles are fitted into motors that control automatic windows, doors, seats and other parts of the vehicle. In refrigerators, fancy magnets are used for art and calendars. Compact discs have magnetic bar codes that are usually deactivated during checkout. “Many cows have magnets in the stomach to attract nails, wire, and other ingested material”. Cellphones have “Neodymium magnets” for speakers and other parts. They are used in transistors as well as laptop disc drives. They are used in chess boards. Essentially, Magnets exist everywhere in terms of its use and applications.

The application comes into existence with the function magnets play in the products they are used. The concept of charged electrons around every atom of a magnet is what gives them so many functions. In Junkyards, magnets are used in machinery to lift as much as 5000 pounds of scrap metal and move it to a location where auto shredders can break them into smaller pieces. These types of machinery are able to do this via electricity. The magnets in these types of machinery are charged via an energizer hence giving them the lifting capability as the electrons in the atomic magnets gets charged. De-energizing the magnet activates the release function and hence they play an important role in moving scrap parts. Also, conveyor belts in the auto shredding facilities have magnets that sort out broken parts. These parts are “picked up by the magnetic fields of the conveyor belt” and released as the parts go out of field’s reach. “Heat plays an important role” in the function of magnets. A magnet can lose about 25% of its function during “a day’s activity.” Hence, junkyard machine magnet manufacturers often pour in special liquid to cool down the magnet when de-energized so it can function without losing its magnetism to heat. When magnetism originated, it was actually used to harness electricity or “induce electric current”. The Mechanical energy was converted into electrical energy in most of the factories and machinery. Electricity may also create magnetism in a reverse process. In fact, the origin of the only natural occurring magnet on Earth is thought to have originated through electricity. “Loadstone” essentially is thought to have been created as the interaction between lightning strikes and magnetic rocks and minerals during earth’s formation. Since the function of magnetism has such a crucial role to play in applications of many products and machinery, special labs have been built that create “magnetism stronger than that of Earth’s own magnetism”. These labs often experiment with living tissue as well as water which result in levitation. Experiments are also conducted on plastic which can alter strength via different colors of light. Apparently, this makes them more useful than metal alloy magnets since they can be manipulated. Hence, the function of magnetism is crucial in understanding its force and applications.

In conclusion, Magnets have many applications due to its function. As a matter of fact, magnets are such a powerful force that substances and materials that do not have magnetism have their applications as well. “De-magnetize-rs” have applications in electronics, compass, and hardware. Though magnets are a powerful force, the force that is the outcome as a direct result of demagnetization due to heat can also be very powerful. Since Earth’s magnetic field is said to be originating from magnetic rocks underneath the ocean, heat from volcanoes or even nuclear tests may result into demagnetization! A demagnetization that would invite the solar waves from the sun or cause the planet and its moon to go out of orbit?